Pantry Pests Annoy Even The Cleanest Homes

Tidewater Gardens

January 13, 1991|By CHRIS SARGENT Columnist

You may be among those who experienced flights of critters other than reindeer over the holidays. I was surprised by bean weevils soaring in my pantry, and friends spent their holidays ducking and swatting the incredibly prolific Indian-meal moth.

Pantry pests are going to be an occasional problem no matter what you do. They're not a sign of inadequate housekeeping or of a malevolent force in the universe out to get you. Instead, they almost invariably enter your home as eggs already infesting a food product you just bought at the grocery store.

Most food products are infested in the field or in storage before processing and packaging. My weevils were in a sealed plastic bag of dried peas I had bought only two days before. My husband thought the peas had developed wings and a lust for travel, but I knew the little round pests for what they were.

Identification of the most common pantry pests might allay any fears you have that your new wool suit will be eaten next. The bugs you're most likely to meet up with in the larder are Indian-meal moths, red flour beetles, confused flour beetles (named by an entomologist with a sense of humor), sawtoothed grain beetles and bean weevils.

Indian-meal moths cause the most anxiety, as they may be mistaken for clothes moths. These moths have three distinctive characteristics: They usually fly in the dark (rather than being attracted to light); when at rest their wings are folded tightly along the line of the body to give them a narrow shape; and they are two-toned in color, with the upper half of the wings a grayish-white and the lower half bronze or reddish-brown.

The Indian-meal moth is a common pantry pest in Virginia, infesting grains, flour, meal, cereals, dried nuts and seeds, chocolate, dried milk and, especially, dry pet food. Eggs are laid by adult moths on or near food and hatch into small worms. These spin silken threads that bind infested material together into clumps. The caterpillars feed for about two weeks before pupating and emerging as adult moths about a month later.

The beetles all look basically alike. They're small, from 1/8 to 1/4 inch long, elongated, dark reddish-brown bugs that feed on everything listed above, as well as odd items like snuff and cayenne pepper. The weevils are also small, but chunky and rounded in shape, and brownish colored with patches of white, black or gray. Weevils tend to infest peas, beans and lentils.

This may give some of you the shudders, but we've all probably eaten our share of these bugs, whether in the egg, larval or _ rarely _ adult stages. Fortunately, they merely supply some additional protein and will not harm you. If you'd rather not enrich your meals with this unusual supplement, chemical sprays are the last thing you should reach for.

Control is not easy, since reinfestation before you kill all the adults is likely. But it can be done. First, remove all possibly contaminated foods, then thoroughly vacuum and wipe out the pantry. Expect to find lingering pests over the next week or so and vacuum or swat them as you see them. Next, inspect the food materials for infestation.

There's rarely any need to throw food away. Either microwave the product on high for several minutes, or freeze it for several days, to kill all stages of pests present. Then sift or pick through the material to eliminate what you can see, and don't worry about what you can't see. If you feel chemicals are required, spray with an aerosol approved for use in home food preparation areas, and follow directions carefully.

Sargent is a Virginia Tech Cooperative Extension agent in Newport News. Anyone desiring more gardening information can call the service at 599-8899.